Developing solid communication skills is vital for all parts of our life.
Professionally, and in our personal life, the ability to communicate effectively impacts our results. Good communication skills are central to allow others, and yourself, to understand information more precisely, and rapidly. If you can communicate well, your influencing ability gets greatly enhanced, and your personal value increases exponentially.
Conversely, poor communication leads to recurrent confusions and frustration. This is probably why, a LinkedIn survey some years ago, indicated that communication topped the list of the most sought-after soft skills among employers.
There is no doubt that when employees within an organisation communicate effectively, work relationships improve, and team dynamics become stronger. For leaders, it becomes even more critical to possess excellent communication skills. It helps you regularly connect with your employees, and also your clients, to ensure they are satisfied. And, with any conflict, communicating with clarity and purpose tends to be the best way to resolve skirmishes between people.
Here are some benefits that come with good communication.
*Teamwork and engagement*
Most organisations require people to work in teams, so increased communication will simply boost intra-employee engagement. When people are able to engage with others mindfully and with respect, it helps them feel valued as significant contributors to the organisation. Naturally, this increases their willingness to go the extra mile towards making a difference for your business. And this in turn, leads to higher productivity, lower attrition rates, which result in greater customer satisfaction.
*Productivity*
Effective communication allows employees to really understand their roles in your company. This guarantees that they deliver better work-product, and ultimately, increase productivity for the organisation. You will also find that if you are a communicative leader, your team members will feel emotionally safe to reach out to you for guidance and counsel. If your team is comfortable doing this, it saves time and energy, and makes the work environment far more efficient. When employees feel comfortable with their leaders, they perform more effectively.
*Morale*
Many organisations experience a drop in productivity when team morale is low. Being able to communication properly and enthusiastically within a team, prevents this from happening. When teams are suitably inspired, they influence each other to work better, and this increases output. It's important to keep team members aware of their impact on the overall success of the business. This will allow them to take pride in their work, and be more spirited at the workplace.
*Conflict Resolution*
One of the best ways to resolve conflicts in a workplace is by ensuring proper communication among employees. Stunted or secretive communication methods often lead to hostile and antagonistic work environments. If your team communicates regularly, it will prevent misunderstandings, between managers and employees.
How can you improve your organisation's communication modalities?
*Clarify expectations*
To eradicate misunderstandings, as a leader, you must deliver your message clearly. It is important that you explain your company goals early, and outline your expectations for every project. This way, everyone involved understands the collective objectives, before they start working with other team members, or departments. Learn to speak plainly, yet politely, to avoid confusion.
*Start listening*
Keep your communication channels open and available at all times. Do not succumb to bias, and choose to listen only to your "favourites." Your entire team must feel that they can seek help, or report issues to you, if they're going through a challenging time. And, they must trust that you will always be fair. If and when there are conflicts, you have to discipline yourself to listen to all parties before attempting to resolve any issue. Only when you encourage everyone to engage in dialogue and show respect, will you be able to solve problems.
*Privacy*
In an age where the "open office space" seems to be preferred, remind yourself that giving your team some privacy, especially in an office setting, will help them feel respected. Employees who want to focus or have to work on a priority project need to work without distractions. Having some privacy can help employees focus on their tasks, so they can collaborate efficiently, when they need to.
*Company culture*
Building and solidifying a good company culture nurtures creativity, and engagement. If you successfully develop a good organisational ethos, it gives your employees something to take pride in when discussing their work environment with outsiders and people from their professional network. This generates interest in other good people to want to join your team. The culture you should develop, is one that values opinions, encourages inclusiveness, allows for respectful dissent, and promotes a safe milieu.
Remember, communication tops the list of skills in demand by most employers. Communication is what makes our professional, and personal relationships go smoothly. It is how we show we care, accelerate transformation, and deliver results.
*The writer is managing consultant and executive leadership coach at EQTD Consulting. He is also the author ot the national bestseller 'So, You Want To Get Promoted?'
